33 Day Challenge Day 25: A New Technique For You

This was a technique that I'd been wanting to try for awhile, the water spotted marble nail (or whatever you want to call it). I was so excited to finally give it a go! I followed (or attempted to) ChelseaQueen's video tutorial. She made it look so easy! With the messy, distressed aesthetic, I figured every nail would be a masterpiece. Well, just like water marbling, I ran into a ton of problems. Buuuut... you can still tell this was the technique I was going for, right? I still think it looks cool.

I love the coppery colors that are peaking through.

For my base colors I used three different polishes and painted them on with the bottle brush in a haphazard way. The easy part was now over. Next was the marbling part. Let's say through a LOT of trial and error, I learned a few things.

#1-DON'T use a foam cup! The polish eats through the foam (if you happen to have drops that fall to the bottom as I tend to). I'm sure everyone knows that already. Well now I know it too.

#2- If you choose to use hairspray, make sure it actually has alcohol in it. I had a proof of purchase label covering the ingredients on my bottle so I wasn't able to check beforehand. I assumed it did. Well, since nothing happened to my polish when I sprayed the hairspray on, I am now assuming it does not.

#3- It's okay if it didn't turn out as you had visualized. Pretend that was your original intention and no one will know!

My thumb nail is my favorite in this mani. It looks pretty rad. My index finger is my second favorite.

What I used:
OPI Warm and Fozzie
OPI Cozu-Melted in the Sun
Wet n' Wild Chrome Penny For Your Thoughts
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?
body spray

Have you tried this technique? Any pointers? I love the coppery colors that are peaking through. I'm trying this again for sure, just so I can show it who's boss!

I suggest watching Chelsea's tutorial for-in depth instructions. Be ready for some trial and error.

33 Day Challenge Day 24: Art With the Color You Own the Most Of

The color I own the most of is.. purple? Really? I mean, I do like purple. I just didn't expect to have so much of it. It's certainly not my favorite color. I don't even own any purple clothing except one solitary "Poison" tshirt. Pretty sure the deciding factor for buying the shirt was that I needed at least one item in that color. So, Yay! for this prompt for getting me utilize the greatest percentage of my stash.

To solved the mystery of How I Acquired So Many Purple Polishes, I took a look at them. Out of the 40 plus purple polishes, 36 of them have been acquired since I since I started my blog. That is, I bought 36 purple polishes in the last four months.
Funny story- a similar thing happened to me a few years ago with my wardrobe. I don't know where it came from, but one day I realized I didn't own any brown clothing or shoes. I had ALOT of black. I decided I needed to branch out. I didn't go crazy or anything, but for a while I only bought brown, and ended up with a good amount.
So this is clearly what happened with my polishes. I looked at my stash, realized it was seriously lacking in shades of purple, and then this time went a little nuts. I wish I could say I don't need any more, but that wouldn't be the truth.

This was my first attempt at a fishtail braid and it ended up a little lopsided. I still like it, it's such a cool look! I love that there are still so many techniques for me to try out. And even with the ones I've tried, there's a lot of perfecting to do!

I hope there are some little girls (older ones too) that will just LOVE this mani. Sometimes it's fun to get extra girly!

What I used:
Thumb (darkest to lightest): Sephora by OPI Seriously it's a Naan-Issue,  OPI Dutch 'Ya Just Love OPI? Sally Hansen Nail Growth Miracle Loyal Lavendar
Index: Wet n' Wild Chrome Hog-Quartz School- metallic purple, Sephora by OPI Domestic Goddess- plum, Sally Hansen Nail Growth Miracle Loyal Lavendar
Middle and Ring: Essie Lilacism- base color, Barielle Hidden Hideaway- stamped butterflies
Pinky: Ulta Salon Formula Tutu Cute-light violet, Sephora by OPI Sugar Plum Fairies Gone Wild-glitter


So, what color do you own the most of?

33 Day Challenge Day 22: Three Color Gradient + Pattern

I had taken a little break from the 33DC, so I have some catching up to do. I'm not sure what my method will be in making up for all the late posts. Today I decided to do Day 22, and we'll see where it goes from there! 

This is a three color gradient, it's just a little hard to tell, I know. I have a thing for very subtle gradients ;).  

This gray/silver gradient reminds me of something by H.R. Giger. Maybe I should have done some kind of alien pattern with it.

I started with a dark gray base color. Then I made the gradient with three colors of loose pigment eye shadows. I used the same brand of eye shadows and method as this post and this other post.

What I used:
Sephora by OPI Break a Leg-Warmer- dark gray base color
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
DRK-A Large Stamping plate 
NS Minerals Eyeshadow

33 Day Challenge Day 23: Geometric

You may or may have not noticed that I've been shirking my 33 Day Challenge posts. I assure you that I haven't abandoned it completely. I just needed a break and wanted to do my giveaway, Halloween nails, birthday, etc. I would like to complete the ones I missed, but I'm not guaranteeing it. So to get back in the game I am joining in on today's current prompt- geometric.

You can see the diamonds sparkle a little better when it's slightly out of focus.

They say diamonds are a girl's best friend, but I don't know about that. I mean, I couldn't say because I don't have any. Chocolate, on the other, I'm sure about. Sorry to my human best friend, but chocolate is always by my side.

What I used:
Wet n' Wild Fergie Blue Eyed Soul- blue
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
Sephora by OPI Meet Me at the Disco- holo glitter
Seche Vite top coat

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure All Fired Up and Midnight Glitz

A few weeks back I found a BOGO coupon for Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure polishes. I was happy to find All Fired Up because I had been looking for that exact shade. Then I picked up Midnight Glitz because I loved the variety of glitters in the bottle. Ever since, I've been wanting to pair them up. Turns out they're not exactly a natural fit. But when I added a black polish under the glitter, it really made all the colors pop!

I applied two coats of All Fired Up, followed with top coat, and let it dry completely. I then placed pieces of striping tape, two side to side, lengthwise down each nail. I then cut Scotch tape into triangles and placed that on each tip. One nail at a time I applied one coat of black polish, globbed on Midnight Glitz, and carefully removed the tape. I let it dry for awhile before I finished with top coat.

If I could ever get my nails long enough, All Fired Up would be a perfect shade for Louboutin nails.

What I used:
Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure All Fired Up- red
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?- black
Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Midnight Glitz- glitter topper
Seche Vite top coat

I love these colors together and will probably do another manicure or two with them together! What do you think? These nails make me want to pull out my leather jacket and swipe on some bright red lips.

Pink Gradient and Holo Glitter Ruffian

I did this manicure back in October. I've been on the fence about whether or not I wanted to post it. I loooved wearing these nails. They were so girly! I am a sucker for gradients, and the glitter was so pretty to stare at. So I was disappointed that my photos didn't come out as well as it looked in person. I am finally just going to post it because no one but me even knows the difference!

I did the same gradient as the one in my Save the Ta Tas mani. I sponged the three polishes on each nail. Then I applied top coat to smooth it all out. For the ruffian look, I applied the glitter on the nail leaving a little gap between the cuticle, and bottom half of the sides. It was finished off with another application of top coat.

What I used:
Sephora by OPI What Aura Gonna Wear?- deep hot pink
Clinique Pinkini- bubble gum pink
Jenna Hipp Damage Control- pastel pink
Sephora by OPI Meet Me at the Disco- holo glitter
Seche Vite top coat


Are you into girly manicures? I'm not a super girly-girl, but pink does usually look good on me.

Special Edition: Happy Birthday to Me!

It's my birthday today! Yay! I had to celebrate with festive birthday nails, and of course, share them with you! I may just have to wear this manicure for the rest of the week, I love it so much.

 They say it's your birthday (da na na na na na na), it's my birthday too, yeah! They say it's your birthday (da na na na na na na), we're gonna have a good time!

I have eleven candles on each hand, making 22 in total. What? You think I'm older than 22? (Don't tell anyone, but it's actually a milestone birthday for me!) Just kidding, I'm not shy about my birthdays, and don't think I ever will be. I like the attention and presents too much!

Since this post is all about me, I thought I'd make it a little more personal. Here are some things you might not know about me:

• I just celebrated my ten year anniversary this summer (I wrote a post for the occasion).
• I have two children.
• I am a cat lover but can't own a cat. :(
• I can palm a woman's basketball.
• I studied American Sign Language in college.
• I LOVE reading. I'm struggling with balancing between reading and doing my nails.
• Another hobby I'm passionate about is pen palling. I've also been seriously neglecting my correspondence since beginning this blog. I need to work on that.
• I'm older than 22. 

I made the candles by painting two stripes of color on each nail, except for my thumb where I did three. I let the colors dry completely, then masked off the areas using striping tape. I painted the whole nail, one at a time, with DS OPI Mystery. Isn't it gorgeous? I promptly removed the tape, carefully trying to avoid smudging. Then I added the flames using Barielle Banana Drop with my pointy dotting tool.

My kids had fun "blowing out" my candles. :)

I did write out all the colors I used for the candles, but decided the list was too obnoxious and confusing. So just let me know if you want to know what I used.

Thanks to everyone for visiting my blog! I truly enjoy working on it, and it warms the cockles of my heart to know that it also brings joy to others.